Marriage – Page 3 – KEEP CALM AND READ ON

May 21, 2013May 21, 2013

Red Hook Beer tasting weekend

last weekend, we went beer tasting at Red Hook Brewery at Woodinville. It was a great experience. BH and I went to Red Hook previously and wanted to take the tour, but missed the last timing. [By the way, last timing on Saturday is 5pm ] We were really glad that we managed to do so this time round with our friends

We paid $1 each for the tour and had about 6 small glasses (2 oz) of beer. It was worth it for the tasting. The guide was a good looking ‘Justin Timberlake’ kind of guy ;D I think we didn’t really learn much about the beer making process. Maybe it was the alcohol – the tour was filled with jokes of sexual connotations?! haha.. i mean.. it’s all for the name of fun!

Just for records, my favorite beer is Audible Ale. It tasted better than Heineken. I find it light and easy to drink, no bad after taste – lower alcohol content too 🙂

By the way… we get to keep the glass (retails for $2 each)!!! How cool!

After the beer tasting, we had dinner at Red Hook. Food are mostly burgers. I think the beer makes me so full.. I shared a salad with Jo instead. No pics of the food :/ However, I am very glad that they had fries to go with their burgers now! It used to be chips when I came last year

Some random pics taken at Chateau Ste Michelle. Loving my new hi-low skirt .. haha 🙂 ohhh… and there’s a interesting event going on this coming Sunday – will drop by if we have nothing better to do

To end this post – More apartment woes: (1) bedroom door fell off – door detached from hinge!!! so dangerous! (2) dishwasher screws came out – now the dishwasher might topple anytime (3) silverfish issue still around :/ The REAL pest control will be coming in on Thursday to examine the issue. Landlord is also getting a repairman to come in. Both BH and I are upset about our staying conditions and is considering moving out…. we just can’t find another suitable place 🙁 In the mist of all these annoying issues, I am glad that our landlord is proactive in solving them even when he is not in town

A reminder to me…

what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger… smile 🙂

May 16, 2013May 16, 2013

The Office

‘The Office’ is an American television series which BH loves a whole lot. I remember that he used to watch every episode when he was in SG. It was pure joy when we relocated to US – BH would not miss any of the episode. For me, I never really understood the humour in this series – it’s not funny to me. I watched it together with him anyway.

I remember the season when Michael Scott left – BH was very sad, he teared :O hahaha… I laughed at him! Then I realised that this series actually accompanied us thru’ adulthood ! It’s been 9 years! I guess the humour grows on you. Not only that, I also felt that we watched the characters developed through the years. Amazing.. how fast time had gone by! 9 years… 9 seasons.. that’s it?! Really?! Both of us would watch ‘The Office’ every Thursday. Even when we can’t watch it, we will record it. I guess.. after tonight, we will be so bored on Thursdays :/

There’s alot of memorable episodes but this episode left the biggest impression on me. If you can watch the video, go to the last 3 mins. If you can’t.. u just got to read on…

Extract below taken from ew.com

As Jim was leaving the office to go back to Philly, he told Pam that he knew it was weird for them to be doing therapy but that he wanted to stick with it. She agreed, half-heartedly, and he exited. As he did, Pam noticed that he’d left his umbrella behind, and, being Pam, she grabbed it and ran after him, catching him just as he was about to take off in a cab. Exchanging a quick thanks, Pam started to walk away, but Jim stopped her…

…For a brief moment, Jim had trouble finding the words for what he wanted to say. “Sorry” clearly wouldn’t suffice, so instead he hugged her. Like, really hugged her. It was as if in that instant he remembered that he was once not Pam’s husband but a guy who had a crush on a girl who had a boyfriend.

It took Pam by surprise. And she didn’t hug back right away. Instead, we cut to a flashback to their wedding, where Jim’s brother (who presided over their wedding) read aloud, “Love suffers long and is kind — it is not proud. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things. Love never fails and now these three remain: Faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”

I felt that this scene is very heart-warming. Sometimes, couples do have their down times – you can’t imagine how much magic a big hug could do 🙂 Just like Jim and Pam, BH and I teared a little at the end of this episode – it was just really sweet. To top it off, “Love never fails and now these three remain: Faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.” is the verse we have on our wedding church booklet. BH turned to me excitedly when he heard the line “That’s the verse we used!!!” I know.. it’s such a common verse but still..it brought good memories. Hearing this verse out of the blue reminds us about the essence of our relationship 🙂

On a lighter note, BH and I had also been using some of the silly phrases Jim and Pam learnt in couples’ therapy. Some examples, “We appreciate that you appreciate that….” , call everything we don’t want to do ‘opportunities’

It was a good episode.. and a great season.. and a series which we will remember for a long long time… 59 reasons we’re going to miss the office sums up everything

At least there’s still Parks and Recreation + Modern Family + The Middle..

May 13, 2013

Kirkland on a Sunday

Recently, BH and I had been feeling kinda bitter that we didn’t move to Kirkland 🙁 well.. maybe if we moved to Kirkland, we won’t be faced with such a irritating pest problem

For the past week, the weather had been superb. I’m just so glad that we get to spend time together… just chilling out.. I feel so blessed 🙂 I really thank God for such simple pleasures..

It was a relaxing weekend.. BH and I decided to swing by Carillon Point for a walk + happy hour/Dinner

BH brought me here when I just arrived in the US.. hahaha.. here’s a pic of us in 2008.. how do we look?! haha

Anyway, it’s nice to visit this place after so long 🙂

Walked around and decided to enjoy Happy Hour at Bin on the lake

We had a lot of food while chatting and enjoying the view.. so romantic! Love such days!

Guess.. u eat more when u r happy? haha

Last but not least..a reminder to all of us..

April 16, 2013April 16, 2013

Re-exploring West Seattle

We have been to West Seattle previously BUT it was always raining… Finally managed to visit this place on a beautiful sunny day. Yes.. it was extremely sunny.. so sunny that my headache started in the morning and lasted till late in the evening :/

Anyway, Seattle’s really pretty.. If I ever need to leave this place, it is going to be so hard to do

We had breakfast at the highly raved Bakery Nouveau. This place is Amanda’s paradise! There’s cakes, tarts, macarons, pastries, bread..every sweet thing that I like! Why didn’t I know about this place earlier?! The downside is it’s very crowded :/Seating is limited. BH and I bought coffee, their famous Twice Baked Almond Croissant & Chocolate Croissant. It was sinfully delicious! I personally thought that $4 for a Croissant is quite expensive. However, the pastries were so tasty that it’s worth every single cent. What do I really like about the pastry? I like it that it’s crispy, buttery and not too sweet! I would fall head over heels in LOVE with it IF it’s served warm. On the other hand, I find the powdered sugar on the croissant disturbing. haha.. it’s just me.. I just find it messy to eat with the powdered sugar, so 1/2 the time, I was trying to scrape off the sugar. Would I go back again? Yes, only if i’m around that area 🙂

West Seattle feels like a small town to me. There’s a all-year round farmer’s market… lots of dogs… and small cafe & restaurants. There are also vintage shops which sells cool furniture! I was quite shocked that we actually spent a good amount of time walking around and just enjoying this place. It’s been a while since we did this. ahh… lovely weekend!

Drove down to Alki Beach and took these pictures..

Ended the day with dinner with friends. Happy Sunday!

Last but not least… this is Monday’s dinner… looks good? Still not my mum’s standard yet.. :/

April 5, 2013April 5, 2013

Getting older

I recently celebrated my birthday – which falls on a Saturday! My favorite birthday day. I know, it’s weird to have a favorite birthday day but that’s Amanda..quirky like that! nah… I didn’t have any celebration or demanded anything out of extraordinary (though a car would be nice.. haha) . I was really contented to spend my day with BH.. we watched Oz the great and powerful for the last weekend at IMAX. I love that movie.. well.. let’s put it this way.. I love movies that enables normal people to do great things! “It’s not about the GREATness but the GOODness”

I had a teary birthday. Somehow, I was sad that I’m older and I have not really got what I thought I would have by X age. No… kids are not in the question… BUT I always wanted to have a home.. nice kitchen.. nice furniture.. The only thing I achieved was… being a homemaker… I know, how different people have different dreams and i may sound like a weak woman for saying this BUT i just want to have a nice place to settle in and have a loving family. this was the sole reason why I thought I saved so hard for (and y i chose the teaching profession in the first place). Now.. it’s just useless…

Well, the thing about me is.. I know what I want so it just feels miserable that I just didn’t achieve it. Now.. another year had passed.. so i was just sad…and teary… boooo…. to top it up… the cake BH bought me tasted stale – I am sad when I didn’t get good cake – so disappointed by the bakery.. it WAS my favorite!!!!

My Corgi, Bamboo eyeing the cake 🙂

Next entry…. updates on new place!

March 10, 2013March 8, 2013

Won’t go home without you Part 4

Last day in LA!

We had brunch at The Kitchen We actually had a hard time looking for this place – our GPS kept bring us round and round. At last, we found it!

Maybe we were early – it was very quiet for brunch at a supposedly high rated restaurant. I like restaurant with a rustic feeling, artsy deco – feels very unique.

I had the highly raved Pear Pancakes.. and it was superb indeed… yumyum!! I think IF I go back to LA – I am so going to dine here again 🙂

The day was sunny and nice ( as usual). After brunch, with no time to waste…. we headed to……. *make a guess?!!*

Griffin Observatory again! yes.. no surprise! hehe.. this place looks beautiful in the day too!

oh…. As BH was dealing with his camera.. I met a super cute doggie! It’s a Corgi-mix, Ally!!!

Tell me.. how adorable Ally is! hahaha.. and she’s a rescue!! wish I could bring her home!

Daytime at GO had a different charm. You can see the “Hollywood” sign pretty close here too!

We did walked around and check out the exhibits. It is certainly a nice place to hang out on a lazy sunday afternoon 🙂

With all these beautiful sights and pictures, we headed to the airport for our flight back to Seattle! Great vacation!!!

Where’s next?!

March 9, 2013March 8, 2013

Mayday concert Part 3b

We went to MAYDAY CONCERT IN LA 😀 The reason for our LA trip, is this concert!

The concert venue was filled with asians – all kinds. They are mostly college students – very young. haha.. That’s when BH and I felt that we had aged ALOT.

Mayday bought back many nice memories for us. When we were dating, BH would play the guitar and i would sing along.. then we will record our singing sessions. haha.. it was really silly but very fun! I had gone to several Mayday concerts ( mostly with my sis in Singapore and HK) BUT it’s our first Mayday concert together! I still think that going to a concert is a waste of money.. haha.. if it’s not to accompany someone, I don’t think I’ll go – I can just listen to them on youtube right?!

Anyway, the concert usually have a storyline. This time round, they had Jerry Yan to be one of the characters in the short ‘movie’ wow! I like Jerry yan!! It was sooooo fated! hehehe… we had good seats too- front seats at the balcony with nobody obstructing our views!

We enjoyed the concert but felt abit lost .. haha. need my sis to explain their inside jokes. The songs they sang this time round were more emo and slow , not the fast& jumping type. I was feeling sad about an incident that happened to our friend – I guess, the songs kind of catered to my feelings

oh.. they also had a guest appearance – It was Rene Liu! so nice to hear her sing after soooo long

We bought the light sticks for US$8 each. Expensive… BUT the colours of the light sticks are centrally controlled – you will see a sea of blue or red or green at the same time! WOW!! Super cool!

Concert ended without much encore :/ It was still a good feeling to listen to chinese music in a western country 🙂

Our concert tix came with free CD!! Super precious – hard to buy chinese CD here… hahaha.. BH had been listening to it in the car..

To be continued…..

March 7, 2013March 8, 2013

Endless blue skies Part 3a

Weather in LA is pretty good… everyday is warm and blue.. beautiful!

Started the day with brunch at the original Farmer’s Market When I visited this place years ago, I saw ” Singapore’s Banana Leaf ” , so i told myself that if I ever go back again, I will try it

erm… turns out that the food is not very authentic. I am not saying that I am a good cook BUT I think i can cook better

BH’s Mee goreng tasted so much better. I feel that the Beef Rendang is lacking of something – just not there. The beef was tender though. I can’t bring myself to finish the bad food .. eeks!

Walked around the market….

Next, we headed to Getty Museum Parking is US$15 but entry + tram ride is FREE. In my opinion, this is the 2nd best almost free attraction in LA

The place is simply beautiful.. great view of LA here!

First thing we wondered… “why is the boy catching the frog naked?!” haha..

There’s also an outdoor garden! We saw super trees! It really reminds me of Singapore’s Garden By the Bay

As usual, the view was soooo good that we hang around outdoors taking pictures. We did go inside the museum, it is HUGE. We only walked a few galleries and got to leave… FYI, museum guide (the ipod around my neck) is free, however, they run out of earpiece so it was kinda useless

I have no idea why time flies so fast in LA. I think we just spend alot of time being stuck in traffic :/

After Getty, we had In-N-Out burger (something which most friends told us to try when we r in LA – I have no idea y)

Ok.. the food is relatively cheap ( but super sinful) The milkshake was super good! phew.. luckily I don’t stay in LA, if not… i will be drinking it ALOT! The interesting thing is.. you can personalise the fries (soft, normal, well done) I like mine normal. BH like it well-done, which I find that it’s super dry.

We had to gobble up our dinner… FAST… as the next stop is……MAYDAY CONCERT!!! Will blog about it in another post 😀

March 2, 2013March 2, 2013

Talking to the moon Part 2b

1 Feb

As mentioned in my previous post, BH and I headed to 1 of the BEST FREE ATTRACTION IN LA : Griffith Observatory (GO)

Just when I thought that the view at Yamashiro was fabulous.. The view at Griffith took my breath away. Initially, we wanted to go to GO during the day but decided that it was silly “who would look at stars in the day?” haha

anyways, off we went. I am so glad that BH is comfortable with driving ( ok, i am a super bad driver.. i won’t want/dare to drive in LA. Traffic is bad. Drivers are fierce!) I guess.. it’s really difficult to visit GO if you don’t have transport.

Parking is free and very limited. We arrived at about 8pm ( closes at 10pm) and waited 30-45mins for a spot. it was worth every second…

The moment we stepped out of the car… both of us “WOW!” It was sooooooooo beautiful! I think I can go to GO every single night (and I’m not someone who is interested in stars)…

Let the pics do the talking….

No… we are not even using a professional camera! The pics just turn out very pretty. Spectacular night! Oh yes… this is the kind of place people go for dates too… haha.. ALOT of PDA here.. if you get what I mean 😀

There were volunteers with huge telescopes outside GO – We saw Jupiter for the 1st time! We also learnt more about stars/planets from them!

By the time we finish admiring the views and taking lots of pics using different modes.. it was close to 10pm!!! The observatory have many interesting exhibits and they are very informative. We didn’t get to see all of them 🙁

so….. we decided that we should squeeze 1 more trip here (in the day) hehe… stay tuned for that entry. Super nice too!!!

March 1, 2013March 2, 2013

It’s a hot date! Part 2a

1 Feb

Weather in LA is pretty nice.. filled with sunshine.. warm.. windy.. and does not get you sticky.. haha.. but i find it very bright.. so sunglasses were my best friend

First stop.. brunch at Blu Jam Cafe – which supposedly have the best french toast.. okok.. i felt like french toast.. haha

oh.. our rental car is a 2012 Ford Focus with sunroof!!! I mean.. we chose the cheapest and most basic rental car.. and we got such a cool car! Love it!! It’s like the first time we had such a nice&new car 😀

Food took a while to come… while waiting..clumsy BH spilled milk on me by accident!! OMG!! As it was a short trip, it didn’t occur to me to bring another pair of jeans… eeks… I kept my cool and didn’t cry over spilled milk :X The weather was soooo hot.. so my jeans dried up in no time ( just hope that i didn’t stink.. oh well…)

The food was generally alright – typical American breakfast food .. the french toast is sooooooooo sinful… i really wish i didn’t order it..

After a filling brunch.. we headed to Santa Monica Beach

It was a beautiful day to be at the beach… haha.. looks just like the magazines…

we also went to Muscle beach.. nothing much there… not even a good looking YOUNG hunk.. hahah

For dinner… we went to Yamashiro.

This is a upscale Japanese restaurant with a fabulous view.

Honestly.. come here for the view… NOT the food… and…. the only form of parking is valet (US$15) Our airbnb was around the corner, so we walked there (up and down the hill!) – it was really scenic.. gorgeous view of LA. This is the kind of place u might want to bring a date to, just to impress her… or… it’s a romantic place to propose to your gf!

The sashimi was quite fresh. My Lychee martini was VERY WATERED DOWN… no kick at all. BH loves his Moscow Mule ( actually I liked it too) – it tasted very refreshing.. My fave sushi was Black Forbidden rice – it’s not made using white sushi rice BUT the black one, hence the name. I felt that it was really unique. hmmm… This meal was very costly… oh well… once in a while – thank you BH 🙂

I really wanted to try the dessert sushi! I have NEVER tried dessert sushi before. However, I was sooooo full from all the starters and sushi… so I tried my luck and requested for a 1/2 order of the dessert… and the chef obliged!!! yay!! Great service!

Dessert sushi taste great! ok.. maybe because I like mascarpone cheese.. haha… they used coconut glutinous rice for the sushi.. i felt that it was a nice fusion!

well… if u are wondering…. our night didn’t end here….. we headed to the BEST FREE ATTRACTION IN LA ( in my humble opinion) – it was sooo worth it…. click some ads and check back tml!!! so excited to blog about it! 😀